★★★☆☆ Average
(SF) When he was ten, the narrator lost his mother in a flood, but something else happened that left him determined to dedicate his life to searching for extraterrestrial intelligence. (2,440 words; Time: 08m)
"Big Thompson," by James Van Pelt [bio] (edited by Trevor Quachri), appeared in Analog Science Fiction and Fact issue 03-04|18, published on February 15, 2018 by Penny Publications.
Mini-Review (click to view--possible spoilers)
Pro: The description of the Fermi Paradox is pretty good.
Con: The SF element seems tacked on to the end of the story.
Other Reviews: Search Web, Browse Review Sites (Issue 03-04|18)
James Van Pelt Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline
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Con: The SF element seems tacked on to the end of the story.
Other Reviews: Search Web, Browse Review Sites (Issue 03-04|18)
James Van Pelt Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline
Follow RSR on Twitter, Facebook, RSS, or E-mail.
Hi, Greg. Thanks for the review and your continued attention in short fiction. I lived in Colorado at the time of the Big Thompson flood. It was both hard and fascinating to revisit that tragic bit of Colorado history.
ReplyDeleteWow. Did you really lose your home (or a loved one) in it?
DeleteThankfully I did not. I don't think I could fictionalize something that personally tragic. It was quite traumatic for the state, though, when it happened, and I knew people who were in the canyon when it happened.
Delete